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DEAR HELOISE: My mother froze a lot of corn, and she used these two easy tricks: After she blanched the corn, she would set the ear of corn on an angel food cake pan and use an electric knife to cut off the kernels. This made cutting off the kernels quicker and easier. And the pan caught the kernels, so there was less mess.
-- Michelle R., via email
DEAR HELOISE: I read Casey's concern about faded laundry in a recent edition of the Press-Enterprise. As a lifelong clothesline user, I'll share my hint: I do laundry in the evening when electricity is less expensive and leave it on the line overnight to dry. The clothes are dry by morning, and there's no worry of them fading.
-- Emily, in Hemet, California
DEAR HELOISE: Regarding the recent letter about leaving the dryer on, it's most likely the lint-clogged vent that caused the fire, not leaving the house with the dryer going. Follow the instructions, clean the lint filter after every use, and clean the vent pipe annually. Don't use a flexible vent pipe, except for very short runs that connect the rigid vent pipe to the machine.
-- Scott R., in Northampton, Massachusetts
Scott, personally, I'm obsessed with cleaning the lint in my dryer. However, from time to time, many people forget to clean out the dryer lint that collects over repeated use. I wish manufacturers would put a warning on dryers to help the public remember how dangerous collected lint can be.
-- Heloise
DEAR HELOISE: Clearing out a house with an online auction service was so much easier than hauling everything to a charity. Also, the fees that we paid employed the photographers and stagers, and we still made a little money. The funny part was when the auctioneer came to meet us; he literally brought stuff back in the house from the trash bin, telling us that these items would sell.
-- M.A., via email
M.A., what a clever idea! I hadn't heard of an online auction for clearing out a house before, but I can already see the advantages. -- Heloise
Send a money-saving or time-saving hint to Heloise@Heloise.com. I can't answer your letter personally but will use the best hints received in my column.